I’m fresh back from the OAA Leadership conference in Memphis, Tenn., the home of the blues. Elvis, fine whiskey and Beale Street—I am officially in love with Memphis and can’t wait to return. I was at Leadership as an optician but also to announce Jobson and 20/20 Pro to Pro as the OAA media partner. Just as we are all about the professional optician at Pro to Pro, so is the Opticians Association of America. This meeting was the perfect blend of presentations, education, networking and having fun. All of the vendor sponsors presented on leadership and in some cases shared the history of their companies, which I found fascinating and inspiring. We heard from the OAA president, the board members, the Associations and Chris Allen, the executive director aka Captain Awesome! The speakers, who are too many to mention, deeply impressed me with their mastery of storytelling, their humor and their command of the audience. In a word, WOW. Mark Mattison-Shupnick, who will always be part of the Jobson family presented. I learned so much, and I have a deep and abiding respect for all of the industry veterans and newbies alike as they all contributed so much to this meeting. I met so many wonderful people, and I came away from the meeting proud to be an optician and thrilled to be part of this extended optical family.

• Deborah Kotob
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2020mag.com/education